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Soaring Towers Shape Hong Kong's Urban Landscape

Hong Kong has more than 550 buildings that are at least 150 meters (492 feet) tall. Dale DE LA REY / AFP
Hong Kong has more than 550 buildings that are at least 150 meters (492 feet) tall. Dale DE LA REY / AFP
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Soaring Towers Shape Hong Kong's Urban Landscape

Hong Kong has more than 550 buildings that are at least 150 meters (492 feet) tall. Dale DE LA REY / AFP
Hong Kong has more than 550 buildings that are at least 150 meters (492 feet) tall. Dale DE LA REY / AFP

Home to some of the world's densest living districts and tallest skyscrapers, Hong Kong has for decades mesmerized locals and visitors alike with its famed skyline.
The Chinese finance hub has more than 550 buildings that are at least 150 meters (492 feet) tall and is the "number one tallest city" in the world, according to the Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat skyscraper database, said AFP.
Hong Kong saw a construction boom in the latter half of the 20th century as its population skyrocketed, and development kept pace after the former British colony was handed over to China in 1997.
The city's two tallest buildings, the International Commerce Centre (484 meters) and the Two International Financial Centre (412 meters), stand gleaming on opposing sides of the Victoria Harbour and cast shadows on the rushing traffic below.
Meanwhile, many of the city's 7.5 million residents live in cramped flats, with households having a median per capita floor area of around 16 square meters in 2021.
A cluster of residential blocks nicknamed "Monster Building" in Quarry Bay was catapulted to international fame after it was featured in the 2014 blockbuster "Transformers: Age of Extinction".
Older public housing complexes, such as Ping Shek Estate and Lai Tak Tsuen, have well-like central courtyards whose dramatic visual signature has made them popular with photographers.
Constrained by natural geography and a restrictive land policy, Hong Kong's urban development in decades to come has nowhere to go but up, scholars say.

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Varieties

Indian Artisans Tackle Waste with Creative Upcycling

In this photograph taken on September 17, 2024, a person with disability, recycles plastic waste as part of the Avacayam employment program by the Society for Child Development, in New Delhi. (Photo by Sajjad HUSSAIN / AFP)
In this photograph taken on September 17, 2024, a person with disability, recycles plastic waste as part of the Avacayam employment program by the Society for Child Development, in New Delhi. (Photo by Sajjad HUSSAIN / AFP)
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Indian Artisans Tackle Waste with Creative Upcycling

In this photograph taken on September 17, 2024, a person with disability, recycles plastic waste as part of the Avacayam employment program by the Society for Child Development, in New Delhi. (Photo by Sajjad HUSSAIN / AFP)
In this photograph taken on September 17, 2024, a person with disability, recycles plastic waste as part of the Avacayam employment program by the Society for Child Development, in New Delhi. (Photo by Sajjad HUSSAIN / AFP)

The world's most populous nation India has a waste problem to match, but one group hopes their efforts can inspire change in one of the top polluters of plastic.

At a bustling workshop north of the capital New Delhi, artisan Ram Babu turns a discarded cigarette packet into a papier mache candle, AFP reported.

Babu, a 28-year-old amputee, is among scores of people with disabilities who have been trained to turn "trash to cash" and do their bit for the environment.

"It feels good to work despite my challenging situation," beamed Babu, as he deftly covered the packet with clay, using sprinkles of water.

Life held little hope for Babu after he lost his right hand and leg in a train accident in 2005.

But he found courage again when he stumbled upon the Avacayam employment program, run by the Society for Child Development, a New Delhi-based charity.

The word "Avacayam" comes from Sanskrit, and roughly translates to "gathering flowers".

Avacayam participants turn orange and yellow flowers that were offered in temples and later gathered up into incense sticks and colored powder used widely in festivals.

They also transform fallen idols of Hindu gods and goddesses -- often left piled under sacred trees -- into sacred powder for temple rituals.

"I have been working for more than 14 years now. My life has found a new direction and purpose," said Babu, who earns 10,000 rupees ($120) a month.

Others like Babu make decorative items, bags and pouches out of recycled waste, which is collected every day at their sprawling center.

Plastic bottles are also reused to make a variety of craft products.

The group's efforts scrape the surface.

In India, municipal governments with limited resources often struggle to manage mountains of waste, with towering piles of foul-smelling rubbish littering the edge of New Delhi.

India generates more than 65 million tons of waste in a year, according to a report by The Energy and Resources Institute, a New Delhi-based research group, but only around a fifth is processed and treated.

A study in Nature published this month named India as the largest plastic pollution emitter, producing nearly one-fifth of global plastic emissions.

Global experts -- including the multi-nation "High Ambition Coalition" -- argue the focus must not only be on waste treatment, but urgently required control measures on plastic production itself.

Charity groups such as Avacayam say they set an example, doing what they can.

"We collect waste and trash from offices, homes and factories," said Madhumita Puri, the founder of the Society for Child Development.

"Then we recycle them to make beautiful things which can be enjoyed again."

Puri said the work also helps people with disabilities live a life of dignity.

Abdul Sheikh, whose legs were stunted by polio, had little means of employment until Puri's charity knocked at his door.

"I learnt that day that we should never lose hope in the face of adversities," said Sheikh, 30, who makes decorative papier mache items.

"Now I don't have to depend on others for anything. I don't have legs but today I am standing on my feet."